MASTER YOUR DESIRES

MASTER YOUR DESIRES

Saturday 28 July                                 Bible in one year: 1 Kings 11-13

Memorise:All things are lawful unto me,but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me,but i will not be brought under the power of any.1 Corinthian 6:12

Read: 1 Corinthians 6:11-13

If God has blessed you with wealth and riches,be cautious so that your prosperity will not become your undoing.Solomon was so blessed he could afford most things that came his way,he went on an acquisition spree.He bought everything money could buy and acquired all his eyes liked. He found himself in a pit of self-indulgence.In Ecclesiastes 2:10 , he said

and whatsoever my eyes desire i have kept not from them, i withheld not my heart from any joy;for my heart rejoiced in all my labour:and this was the portion of all my labour.

He had lost control! His money was now pushing him in every direction. Has God blessed you?Praise God! But never let it get to a point where you are no longer led by the spirit but by the spirit of mammon.You should remain in control of what you have not the other way. To this end Paul says:

All things are lawful unto me,but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me,but i will not be brought under the power of any.1 Corinthian 6:12

You don’t have to buy something because you can afford it.There are many things you can buy off the shelf but you don”t because you do not need them. Abundance can kill and power with control corrupts.To distinguish themselves according to their class,rich men eat certain processed  foods which at the end give them special illness which the poor do not have.Many like power but they fail to realise that it is a two-edged sword. Keep your power under lock and Key! Deliberately refrain from over indulging yourself. If a water bed will take away your prayer life,don’t buy it or if you have bought it, get it out.If television programs will continue to tempt you, avoid the box. If a particular type of car or house will make you to become proud, do something about it.Never allow what was meant to serve you become your lord.

PRAYER POINTS: Father, help me to put my desires under the control of your Spirit in me.Thank you for the past conventions of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG). I pray that this year’s convention will witness God special visitation,power and harvest of souls as never experienced.

Open Heavens by Pastor E.A Adeboye

which israel is it?

Friday 27 July                                   Bible in one year:1 Kings 8-10

Memorize:For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly neither is that circumcision , which is outward in the flesh;Roman 2:28

Read: Romans 2:25-29

When it’s all been said and done, good will always have victory over evil.In Revelations 3:9 , the Lord made a promise to the church Philadelphia saying:
Behold, i will make them of the synagogue of Satan, which say they are Jews, are not,but do lie;behind, i will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I loved thee.

This is a powerful promise but appears somewhat controversial. How can you tell the Jews that are not regarded as Jew by God?Earlier, God specifically choose to reveal Himself to the world through the children of Israel.This started right from the old testament. Even Jesus came, He said He was not sent to the gentiles but the lost sheep of Israel.hence he sent His disciples only to them( Matthew 10:5-6). But when they took for granted that they were Jews and the children of Abraham and thought they could do whatever they liked, John the Baptist told them that God could replace them with children from stones ( Luke 3:8). But they did not believe.At some point, when the Lord was done reaching out to them, He left them desolate ( Matthew 23:37-39).

Afterward the Lord created another entity which is His body, the church believers,comprised of believing Jews and believing Gentiles. These are the spiritual Jews or “Israel of God”. In these group ,there is no discrimination (Galatians 3:28-29;6 :15-16). All God’s dealing according to His covenant with Abram are now realized through being a spiritual Israelite.All promises of God to Abram are now also appropriated thought this body of believers.They are the bride of Jesus Christ. In Revelations 3:9 , God promised that the enemies of His church will bow down and worship before the spiritual Jews.The physical Jews expect Isaiah 49:23 to be fulfilled but they have failed to realized that a change has occurred.These promises have now been transferred to the church. Any physical Jew who fails to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior will together with other unbelievers will bow to us Christians someday. Those who are persecuting the church today will one day bow to us.Are you part of the  true Israel of God? If you are , do everything possible to keep it so.

KEY POINT: To be relevant in God’s end time plan, everyone, including natural Jews heed to become a part of the church-the spiritual Jews

Lust or Love

Thursday 26 July                                          Bible in one year: 1 Kings 5-7

Memorise : God commendeth his love toward us , in that , while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.Romans 5:8

Read : 5:7-8

A discuss on love would normally focus on a minimum of two people-the lover and the loved. The lover is the subject while the loved is the object. In a true love situation, the subjects seeks the welfare of the loved, whether the object deserves it or not. Romans 5:7-8 says Jesus Christ died for us at a point no one else could have. While we were separated from Him as sinners with enmity between us , He died for us. How many of you can die for your enemies? If anything , most people would want their enemies dead this minute. What love can be greater than that of Jesus Christ? Most times, we misunderstand the word “love”. A man telling a lady,”i love you”,might really mean “I am lusting after you”. This is a counterfeit of God’s love. Lust is selfish, self-centered and seeks to exploit the object. Lust is dirty and does not care how it satisfies its ungodly desire, hence you find men raping ladies or being involved in incestuous sex, same sex intercourse or bestial sex. The one in lust is seeking for somebody to use. To him, the object of lust is only an object-just like any tool or machinery used for work.

When a subject is lusting after an object, he will show a lot of interest, shower gifts and feign care for the object. The man will do anything to convince the lady he loves her. But as soon as he gets what he wants, the object will mean nothing to him. In some cases, after the man has succeeded in sleeping with the lady, the so called love turns into extreme hatred(2 Samuel 13:1-15). Just as it is in human relationships, so it is in our relationship with God. Many people who claim to love God but do not love Him but are only desirous of what they can get from Him, He has become an object they can use to get what they want(John 6:25-27). Do  you love God? Why do you love God? Examine yourself to see that your love is not really lust?

KEY POINT:  Are you seeking God or His works?

VALUE GIVER

Wednesday 25 July Bible study in one year : 1Kings 1-4

Memorize: And he is the head of the body,the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. Colossians 1:18

Read: Colossians 1:15-18

If we study the lives of those who in bible times carried the glory of God, we will understand their secrets.We can partake of the same glory by using these secrets. However , it must be stated here that the glory of the Lord made available to New Testament saints by His blood far surpasses the entire glory of the Old Testament as the Old was only a shadow of and a fore runner of the New,Yet many of us are yet to manifest the glory of the Old testament, how much more the New Testament, May you partake of this latter House glory in Jesus name.

An outstanding carrier of His glory under Covenant was Moses.But how did it all begin? Exodus 3:1-6 says it started with a personal encounter with the Lord. For every true carrier of God’s glory, there must be a day in his or her life that the personally encountered with the Lord .This is more than your parents dedicating you to the Lord while you were still a babe. It is beyond a family community decision. Personal conversation to Christ is sacrosanct and foundational to partaking in God’s glory. Some years ago, a particular “man of God” rose with predictions for each year. He became a quite popular. One day, he was interviewed by the press on how he started up till his point of fame. While perusing his comments, it was observed that there was no mention of a day in his life in which he gave his life to Christ. He claimed to have certain gifts from the womb which brought him to his current level. Going by God’s word, he has not started. There are yet many people who are presiding over churches today and preach salvation messages because it is in vogue,but have never received Jesus Christ as their Lord and personal savior. They have not started. In God’s kingdom, you can not skip a very foundational experience like salvation and think you can be relevant. All you will do will be without record and without reward. Do all the good in this world and all you get for each is zero. Jesus is the only One that can add value to any life. Receive Him to today

KEEP POINT: John 1 vs 9 says Jesus gives light o all who comes into the world. Anyone who has not received Him will spend his or her years in darkness,

LEAVE YOUR PAST

 

Tuesday 24 July                                       Bible in one year: John 18-21

Memorise: Brethren , I count not myself to have apprehended : but this one thing i do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, Philippians 3:13

Read : Proverbs 37:23-25

When God uses one of His servants to bless you, you can appreciate that servant of God but appreciate God much more. Why? God is the source of the blessing while His servant is only a vessel. Never turn a vessel into your source. If you do , both you and the vessel may get into trouble with God. It was in light of this Knowledge that Elisha, despite his devotion to Elijah did not forget the God of Elijah. He called for the God of Elijah and not for Elijah or his anointing at the River Jordan (2 Kings 2:13-14). Elisha faced a new reality after the departure of Elijah. It was a new phase for him. You need to walk in understanding that life is in phases. When one phases ends, another begins. Psalm 37:25 says:
I have been young, and now am old; yet have i not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.

According to this scripture, there is the phase of being a youth and another phase of being old. A new phase had just began in the life of Elisha. The phase of Elisha the servant, who went everywhere with his master had just ended and another phase of Elisha the national prophet with several attendants had just begun. When the time for his next phase came, he refused to continue in the old phase.
You must be ready to move forward. Stop living in the past. In 1 Samuel 25:1 , after mourning the death of Samuel, David continued with his journey. Life continue irrespective of the challenges of each day, and so must you. Paul had to adopt a strategy of forgetting his past so that he could face his future ( Philippians 3:12-14). Some people have lost their future to their past because somehow, there were never able to put the past behind them. Have you lost someone you love so much? Move on from that spot! Have you lost someone who promised to help sponsor your education or help set you up in business? Move on from that spot and another helper will surface. You could also receive direct help from above.Never allow past failures hinder your success. Also, never allow past victories and successes hinder future ones. Stop dwelling in your past! As long as your remain at the bust stop of life, no new thing will come to you. Move forward! take a step into your future today!

KEY POINT:
If you don’s leave your past, it will continue to hunt you.
Open Heaves by Pastor E.A Adeboye

Hope of Restoration

Monday 23 July                         Bible in one year: 1 Samuel 29-31

Memorise: For there is a hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again, and that the tender branch thereof will not cease. Job 14:7

Read: Ezra 10:2-3

Sin is a cruel robber of hope. You will observe that as a believer in right standing with God, it is easy for you to express faith and hope but the moment you sin, the basis for faith and hope is eroded. Fear and doubt invade your heart. You will begin to wonder if the promised of God you have been waiting for will still be realised or not. Sin robs you of hope so you should keep away from it. After falling into sin,some people completely lose the hope of being forgiven or restored to faith. A young evangelist who faithfully won several souls to the Lord was a victim of this. He fell into fornication one day and the devil deceived him that because of that act he could never receive pardon.He believed that lie and continued to live in sin until he fell ill one day and was hospitalised. While there , he was in the same ward with another man- a pastor who carefully studied his bible. He admired him. One day , the pastor asked him if he was a Christian and he said He used to be.”used to ? What happened?” The pastor asked and he told him his story. The pastor immediately swung into action showing him through that he could be forgiven and restored. Then he prayed with him and joy flooded his heart that night.

By the following morning when the pastor woke up ,he did not see his ward mate so he asked the nurses about him. He was informed that the man had joyfully passed on. After his tests, his wife- a medical doctor- announced to the pastor that he was free to go. Annoyed that he was kept in a hospital bed for days for nothing,he pondered on why God would allow that , only to realize he was used to restore hope to the hopeless. Have you backslidden and believe there is no more hope  for your restoration? There is hope for you today! Go on your knees, confess your sins and re-invite Jesus into your heart as Lord and Savior and dedicate your life to Him. He will forgive and restore you. From today’s Bible reading , some men who were isrealites, violated God’s command in Deuteronomy 7:- yet they had hope for restoration. However , do not deliberately sin thinking you will always have opportunity to repent and be forgiven; you may not. But today, you can be restored to the Lord now. He will forgive you and put you back on track to Heaven.

ACTION POINT: Prayerfully search for three backsliders around you and lead them back to Christ.

Open Heavens by Pastor E.A Adeboye

Launch out into the deep

Luke 5 vs 4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”

In our newsletter titled Peter Gifts , we discussed about five things peter gave before he got his breakthrough. He gave his boat,strength,time,freedom and his life. If we carefully study Luke 5vs 1-7, we will notice that after he gave this things nothing happened until he launched out into the deep(as advised by Jesus). What Peter's gift got him was the attention and presence of Jesus . Psalm 62 vs 11 says in the presence of God there is fullness of Joy. Giving what Peter gave to Jesus will earn you fullness of Joy but there is a higher level of Joy as described in Jude 1vs24 called exceeding joy.

Jesus appreciated the efforts and gifts of Peter but He knew that alone will not earn Peter the breakthrough he desired so He advised him to launch out into the deep.

This brings us to the question what is in the deep ? Healing of diseases both curable and incurable. According to Exodus 15 vs 26 , the Lord is the greater Physician / Healer. He can heal the body , soul and spirit. In Mark 5 vs 25-34 , Jesus healed a woman who had the issue of blood for 12 years. I know most of us men might not understand what this means but just imagine a woman who had been menstruating non stop for twelve years. I need not to tell you that after her healing she was filled with exceeding joy. In Luke 13 vs 10-17 , Jesus healed another woman who had a bent back for eighteen years. In eighteen years , she never stood upright or straight for once but the Most High God healed her. In John 5 vs 1-18 is the story of a man who had been sick and been by the pool of Bethesda for thirty eight years. To be sick with fever for two weeks is a lot talk less of sickness that is worse than that for 38 years. I pray today that the Lord will heal every sickness in your body in Jesus name.

Also in the deep, fruitless efforts become fruitful. In Luke 5 vs 1-7 , Peter fished all night but there was nothing to show for his effort but when he got to the deep , he launched his net once and he caught a net breaking ,boat sinking catch. Sarah tried like every other women on earth but had nothing to show for her effort. She tried everything to get a child even she went to the extent of try to get a child through her maid and that one decided to despise her for been barren but one day the One who is so deep that no one can completely understand Him came and visited her and she became a mother of nation . Hannah was constantly reminded by Peninnah that she was barren- 1 Samuel 1 vs 6, but one day she launched into the deep and became a mother of six – 1 Samuel 2vs 21. I believe there is someone reading this newsletter at this point who is been reminded regularly that she is barren , I pray that in the name of Jesus , very soon you will be a mother of twins.

In the deep is wealth. Contrary to many beliefs , God does not give wealth He gives you the power to get wealth. Deuteronomy 8 vs 18 says and you shall remember the Lord your God , for it is He who gives you power to get wealth, that He may establish His covenants He swore to your fathers. He gave Isaac so much ability and power that He sowed in Genesis 26vs 12-13 and became very rich. Actually He was greater than a nation. He gave Solomon ability too and that one made silver as common as stone- 1Kings 10vs 27

Also wisdom can be found in the deep. James 1 vs 5 says God is the giver of wisdom. Proverbs 4 vs 7 says wisdom is a principal thing ;therefore get wisdom , and in all your getting ,get understand. When we talk of wisdom , Daniel was a man of wisdom .The bible says in Daniel 1 vs 20 that Daniel and his friends were ten times better than the intellectuals of Babylons. By the time we get to Daniel 6 vs 3 , the whole nation began to commend Daniel's wisdom , they said they found an excellent spirit in him. Bezalel was another man who was full of the spirit of wisdom. The man was so full of wisdom the Lord recommended him for work -Exodus 31 vs 1-5. I pray that the Lord will give me and someone such a spirit in Jesus name, If you are that person say amen.

In the deep is divine protection .There is no protection anywhere except in the Lord. Proverbs 18 vs 10 says the name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runs to it and he is save. Psalm 127 vs 1 says a house is only save when the Lord watches over it .Psalm 125 vs 2 says just like mountain surrounds Jerusalem so also He surrounds His people both now and forevermore. In 2 Kings 6 vs13-18 , Gehazi saw that the host of Syrians had surrounded Dothan and he ran to Elisha. The prophet prayed that the Lord should open the eyes of Gehazi and he saw Heavenly host in their multitudes on horses and chariots of fires all around protecting them. This is what I call protection.

Also in the deep is open doors -John 9vs 1-12, deliverance -Mark 5 vs 1-20 ,peace . Jesus said in John 14 vs 27 my peace I leave with you ,My peace I give unto to you;not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled,neither let it be afraid. Isaiah 66 vs 12 talks of God extending peace like a river.

Now the question in most people's heart is how can I launch out into the deep or what does it mean to launch out into the deep ? How did Peter launch out into the deep ? The first thing Peter did to launch out into the deep was obedience. He fully obeyed Jesus .The problem with most of us is half obedience , some of us pay our offerings but we do not tithe, some of us tithe but do not witness or evangelize , many evangelize but do not pay their first fruits. Proverbs 3 vs 9 says Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase. Many of us even pay offerings,tithe ,support other projects in the church and still do dodgey or funny deals at work. All these are partial obedience and God demands full obedience. There are many who sisters who are not submissive to their husbands , there are many brothers who still abhors unforgiveness . The only way to move from fullness of joy to exceeding joy is total obedience.

Another thing Peter did was he stepped up his commitments, he said nevertheless at your word I will let down the net- Luke 5 vs 5. Anyone who wants to breakthrough needs to step up his commitments to God. We have to decide that no more attending church on Sundays alone ( Sunday Sunday tablets) but to attend mid week services,we have to put an end to ten minutes of prayer and step up our prayer lives ,we have to decide that we will not only speak in tongues during church night vigils but everyday , we have to decide that we will read at least a chapter of the bible daily, we have to decide to stop hiding our faith in Christ in our places of work or business or amidst friends,we have to put an end to coming to church late,we have to decide to not to be a church goer alone but a worker in the church. We all need to step up our commitment to Christ , we all need to begin to evangelize.1 Samuel 2 vs 30 says those who honor Me , I will honor. Honor the Lord today and He will honor you.

Another thing Peter did was he stepped up his efforts . Launching out into the deep requires an effort. The effort needed to sail a boat in deep waters is more than the effort needed to sail a boat on shallow waters. Proverbs 22 vs 29 says diligence in business is what makes a man to stand before Kings .Proverbs 12 vs 11 says he who tills his land will be satisfied with bread. Proverbs 31 vs 17 talks of a virtuous wife. The bible says she girds herself with strength, and strengthens her arm. It is a bad thing to be lazy as a lady too. Actually by God's standards a virtuous woman is one who seeks wool and flax, and willingly works with her hands – Proverbs 31 vs 13.

A way of launching out into the deep is completely trusting the word of God. Peter said at thy word, Peter had faith in the word of God. The problem with many of us is we doubt the word of God. Hebrew 11 vs 6 says without faith it is impossible to please God in other words when you do not have faith you are displeasing God. Many of us are in the same place we are last year due to fear and lack of our trust in the word of God. We do not have faith in our ability . Colossians 1 vs 27 says Christ in you the hope of glory. Once you have Christ you can never fail. Make that move today and you will see God in action.

Another thing Peter did was he expected a good result that was what geared him to obey God. Proverbs 23 vs 18 says the expectation of the righteous will not be cut short. You will only get what you expect .If a man expects to fail , he will fail. I expect to succeed in Jesus name. Peter was expectant and he got his rewards .

And finally launching out into the deep means spending more time with Jesus. Peter increased the time he spent with Jesus and it paid off. God is not our messenger we bark orders to .We must learn to first worship Him, thank Him and then table our request or petition before Him. We must be willing to spend time in His presence praising Him, studying the word of God and generally fellowshipping with Him. We cant be too busy to spend time with the One who can solve all our problems.

Romans 6 vs 1 says shall we live in sin and ask for grace to abound ? It is impossible sir. 1 John 3 vs 9 says whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God. Anyone living in sin is not of God. Jesus said in John 3 vs 3 except a man is born again He shall not see the kingdom of heaven.

If you have not giving your life to Christ please do so and if you have backslidded you can come back to Christ today.

The bible said in Romans 3 vs 23 that for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 6 s 23 says For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The gift was explained in John 3 vs 16 , For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. What shall we do to be save ? The bible says in Romans 10vs 9 that if you confess with your mouth , Jesus is Lord , and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Romans 10 vs 10 – For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with our mouth that you confess and are saved.

Pray this prayer from your heart today!

Dear Jesus , I believe that You died for me and rose again on the third day. I confess I am a sinner. I need your love and forgiveness. Come into my heart . Forgive my sins. I receive Your eternal life. Confirm You love by giving me peace, joy and supernatural love for others, Amen.

Welcome to Christ brethren, Please join a bible believing church.

Samuel Oluwatoki

Please forward this newsletter to a friend, family or colleague . Remember Matthew 10 vs 32 which says whoever confesses me before me , him I will confess before my father who is heaven.